Harare, May 30 (IANS) Zimbabwe plans to buy 14 locomotives for about $29 million from a Chinese company, a media report said.
NRZ had already paid $2.9 million in advance in this regard, the allafrica.com reported quoting Fanuel Masikati, spokesperson for the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ). It did not reveal the name of the Chinese company.
Currently, the company has 65 locomotives and plans to acquire more as part of the company’s expansion programme that started in 2003.
The programme is expected to revitalize and re-equip the company by boosting its capacity, aimed at expediting the country’s economic recovery.
The NRZ had acquired 12,000 tonnes of rail from China in 2006, which is being welded into 144 metres of rail to replace sections of the rail network on the North, South East, Dabuka-Harare and Mutare sections.
The company has also entered into a deal with a local company to manufacture rail sleepers, which will be fitted simultaneously with the new rail.
At least 60,000 sleepers are to be manufactured and delivered to the NRZ this year. The country’s railway network covers over 3,000 km.
NRZ was last year forced to stop the use of electric trains due to theft of equipment. The company requires about $10 million to replace the damaged equipments.
This year, the NRZ is projecting to move 6.4 million tonnes of freight, 1.2 million inter-city passengers and 1.3 million intra-city commuters.
